Eastern District of California Blogtag:typepad.com,2003:weblog-18247872017-11-16T16:47:34-08:00This blog focuses on news and information regarding practice in the federal courts in the Eastern District of California, with a special emphasis on criminal and civil rights cases. TypePadFresno State Professor Settles First Amendment Suit Over Erasing Anti-Abortion Chalk Messages on Campustag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401bb09d7d367970d2017-11-16T16:47:34-08:002017-11-16T16:47:34-08:00A Fresno State professor will pay $17,000 and undergo first amendment training after he erased students’ anti-abortion chalk messages on campus, according to Alliance Defending Freedom. Greg Thatcher, a professor of public health, was sued in May by two students after video showed him scrubbing out messages like “women need love, not abortion” with his shoe and instructing other students to do the same. A court order filed last week forbids Thatcher from “interfering with, disrupting, defacing, or altering” any...John Balazs

A Fresno State professor will pay $17,000 and undergo first amendment training after he erased students’ anti-abortion chalk messages on campus, according to Alliance Defending Freedom.

Greg Thatcher, a professor of public health, was sued in May by two students after video showed him scrubbing out messages like “women need love, not abortion” with his shoe and instructing other students to do the same. A court order filed last week forbids Thatcher from “interfering with, disrupting, defacing, or altering” any similar student activities.

Jury Rules For Sacramento In Homeless Suit Over No-Camping Ordinancetag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401b8d2bab3c1970c2017-11-03T07:46:47-07:002017-11-03T07:46:47-07:00The verdict is in for the trial on the legality of Sacramento's no-camping ordinance. The jury delivered a verdict in favor of the city, meaning homeless people will continue to be cited for camping out on the streets. After deliberating more than three hours, the jury returned a 9-3 verdict that went against civil rights attorney Mark Merin and plaintiff John Kraintz, saying the city's no camping ordinance did not discriminate againsthomeless people. The lawsuit claimed the city of Sacramento...John Balazs

The verdict is in for the trial on the legality of Sacramento's no-camping ordinance.

The jury delivered a verdict in favor of the city, meaning homeless people will continue to be cited for camping out on the streets.

After deliberating more than three hours, the jury returned a 9-3 verdict that went against civil rights attorney Mark Merin and plaintiff John Kraintz, saying the city's no camping ordinance did not discriminate againsthomeless people.

The lawsuit claimed the city of Sacramento ordinance was unconstitutional because it selectively enforced against homeless people to keep them on the move and out of sight. Other residents who are not homeless and who routinely "camp out" to get special retail deals at shopping malls are not threatened with arrest.

EDCA Homeless Civil Rights Trial Startstag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401b8d2b841a3970c2017-10-26T06:22:56-07:002017-10-26T06:22:56-07:00More than eight years ago, homeless men and women set up tents and bedrolls in an empty lot near downtown Sacramento to challenge the city’s ordinance against camping outdoors for more than a day at a time. On Monday, their legal saga finally began to play out in court. Homeless people are plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit against the city of Sacramento, arguing that the camping ordinance is selectively enforced against men and women who have nowhere but the outdoors...John Balazs

More than eight years ago, homeless men and women set up tents and bedrolls in an empty lot near downtown Sacramento to challenge the city’s ordinance against camping outdoors for more than a day at a time.

On Monday, their legal saga finally began to play out in court. Homeless people are plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit against the city of Sacramento, arguing that the camping ordinance is selectively enforced against men and women who have nowhere but the outdoors to sleep. The city’s behavior toward homeless people, they argue, violates the constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law.

EDCA Civil Rights Suit Challenging Sacramento's Camping Ban Set For Trialtag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401bb09cd0511970d2017-10-13T17:34:07-07:002017-10-13T17:34:07-07:00Civil rights attorney Mark Merin said his long-gestating legal challenge, Allen v. City of Sacramento, is tentatively scheduled to go before a jury on October 23. The civil lawsuit originated in late 2009, after Merin allowed nearly two dozen homeless people to take up residence on a vacant piece of property he owned in a light-industrial area of the city, according to appellate court documents and a phone interview with Merin. Merin gave them his written permission, brought in portable...John Balazs

Civil rights attorney Mark Merin said his long-gestating legal challenge, Allen v. City of Sacramento, is tentatively scheduled to go before a jury on October 23.

The civil lawsuit originated in late 2009, after Merin allowed nearly two dozen homeless people to take up residence on a vacant piece of property he owned in a light-industrial area of the city, according to appellate court documents and a phone interview with Merin. Merin gave them his written permission, brought in portable latrines and two service providers to offer care within the confines of the fenced lot. The deal was that Merin’s 22 guests could stay until they qualified for shelter.

Police officers enforcing the city’s ban on urban camping rousted the camp’s occupants with citations and the confiscation of their gear, which included tents and bed rolls. The campers returned, only to be cited again. The third time they came back, they were arrested.

Merin filed the lawsuit on behalf of his homeless guests, one of whom the suit was named for—Matthew Raymond Allen. Allen v. City of Sacramento alleged the city violated the homeless plaintiffs’ constitutional rights to sleep and due process.

Jury Awards $6.5 Million to Family of Mentally-Ill Man Killed by Sacramento Sheriff's Deputytag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401bb09c83d97970d2017-09-29T06:29:01-07:002017-09-29T06:29:01-07:00A federal jury took less than than two hours Wednesday to award $6.5 million to the family of Johnathan Rose, a schizophrenic man shot and killed in his home by a Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy who’d been called by Rose’s parents to help their agitated son. Rose’s father, Ted Rose – who had said he could feel the bullets enter his son’s body as he tried to restrain him – filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Deputy David McEntire and...John Balazs

A federal jury took less than than two hours Wednesday to award $6.5 million to the family of Johnathan Rose, a schizophrenic man shot and killed in his home by a Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy who’d been called by Rose’s parents to help their agitated son.

Rose’s father, Ted Rose – who had said he could feel the bullets enter his son’s body as he tried to restrain him – filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Deputy David McEntire and Sacramento County but died last week on the eve of his scheduled testimony in the case.

EDCA Court Permits First Amendment Right of Association Claim By Siblings of Man Killed by Sacramento Policetag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401b8d2ad6129970c2017-09-22T13:10:45-07:002017-09-22T13:10:45-07:00The Sacramento Bee today reports on an interesting ruling by Judge Shubb permitting a First Amendment right of association cause of action to proceed in a § 1983 action brought by the siblings of Joseph Mann, who was killed by Sacramento police last year: The sisters and brothers of a man killed by Sacramento police won a pivotal federal court ruling this week that potentially expands who can legally sue in the aftermath of police shootings and opens a window...John Balazs

The Sacramento Bee today reports on an interesting ruling by Judge Shubb permitting a First Amendment right of association cause of action to proceed in a § 1983 action brought by the siblings of Joseph Mann, who was killed by Sacramento police last year:

The sisters and brothers of a man killed by Sacramento police won a pivotal federal court ruling this week that potentially expands who can legally sue in the aftermath of police shootings and opens a window on more information about the controversial incident.

But Mann’s five siblings were unhappy with the outcome of their father’s suit because they wanted it to include public tracking of police reforms in Sacramento and information on whether the two officers who fired shots had been disciplined by the department.

In June, they filed an unusual lawsuit using the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Most commonly known for protecting free speech, the First Amendment also protects the right of association – usually invoked for social or political groups.

Lawsuits involving police shootings are usually filed in federal court using the due process clause of 14th Amendment. But the Supreme Court has limited who can file those suits to parents and children of the deceased.

In the Mann case, Sacramento lawyer Mark Merin argued that the killing deprived Joseph Mann’s sisters and brothers of the right to associate with him.

A judge said that legal angle raised “perplexing” questions, but was valid.

United States District Judge William B. Shubb ruled that nothing in the language of the Constitution or case law around the two amendments clearly excludes siblings from suing under the First Amendment, making it legal for the Mann siblings to make their claim.

Highlighting the ambiguity and gaps in current case law that lead to his decision, Shubb wrote, “It is sometimes said that tough cases make bad law. Here it might be more appropriately said that bad law makes tough cases.”

The civil trial over the Sacramento sheriff deputy's 2012 shooting of an unarmed schizophrenic man continues in Judge Nunley's courtroom this week. Here is Sac Bee's coverage of the trial yesterday and Tuesday.

EDCA Court Rules Vallejo Kidnapping Case Couple Can Sue Citytag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401bb09acc4e0970d2017-07-07T05:56:49-07:002017-07-20T16:02:31-07:00A federal judge has rejected efforts by Vallejo officials to toss out a lawsuit filed by the couple victimized in an outlandish 2015 kidnap case that generated worldwide headlines likening it to the novel and film “Gone Girl.” In a 22-page order filed Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley refused to dismiss claims by Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn that they had suffered emotional distress and other hardships because of declarations by Vallejo police that the kidnapping was a...John Balazs

A federal judge has rejected efforts by Vallejo officials to toss out a lawsuit filed by the couple victimized in an outlandish 2015 kidnap case that generated worldwide headlines likening it to the novel and film “Gone Girl.”

In a 22-page order filed Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley refused to dismiss claims by Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn that they had suffered emotional distress and other hardships because of declarations by Vallejo police that the kidnapping was a hoax.

***

“Denise and Aaron are thrilled that the court has agreed that the Vallejo Police Department’s malicious and public attacks against them are not immune under the law,” one of the couple’s attorneys, James Wagstaffe, said in a statement. “Denise and Aaron look forward to holding the Vallejo Police Department accountable for its shocking offensive against two victims of a horrific crime, and working to make sure that other victims are not dismissed and degraded like they were.”

Sacramento Settles Police Abuse Case For $220,000 After Learning Officer Gave False Testimonytag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401bb0996734a970d2017-04-30T17:38:57-07:002017-04-30T17:38:57-07:00The city of Sacramento agreed Thursday to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit for $220,000 after learning that one of three police officers named as defendants gave false testimony in the case. Plaintiff’s attorney Mark Merin confirmed the amount of the award. Merin’s client, Arlie Halcomb, sued the city in U.S. District Court in Sacramento on charges that officers roughed him up when they came to his Fruitridge Road apartment searching for another person in 2014 and detained him for...John Balazs

The city of Sacramento agreed Thursday to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit for $220,000 after learning that one of three police officers named as defendants gave false testimony in the case.

Plaintiff’s attorney Mark Merin confirmed the amount of the award. Merin’s client, Arlie Halcomb, sued the city in U.S. District Court in Sacramento on charges that officers roughed him up when they came to his Fruitridge Road apartment searching for another person in 2014 and detained him for up to an hour against his will.

“I think they did the right, honorable, ethical thing to settle the case once they realized that their principal witness had lied,” Merin said of the city’s decision to settle.

California Prisons Settle Mentally-Ill Inmate's Cell-Extraction Claim During Trialtag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a011278de342f28a401b8d27c191a970c2017-04-26T06:28:13-07:002017-04-26T06:28:13-07:00With plaintiffs about to rest, the state prison system agreed before court began Tuesday to stop the trial and pay a mentally ill former inmate $950,000. Jurors in the federal court trial in Sacramento said the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation made the right call to settle the case with Jermaine Padilla, the ex-prisoner. Padilla’s videotaped cell extraction where prison officers repeatedly pepper sprayed him and then strapped him naked onto a gurney for 72 hours pretty much settled...John Balazs

With plaintiffs about to rest, the state prison system agreed before court began Tuesday to stop the trial and pay a mentally ill former inmate $950,000.

Jurors in the federal court trial in Sacramento said the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation made the right call to settle the case with Jermaine Padilla, the ex-prisoner.

Padilla’s videotaped cell extraction where prison officers repeatedly pepper sprayed him and then strapped him naked onto a gurney for 72 hours pretty much settled the matter in the jurors’ minds.